Azeris in Iran

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This article is about Azeris in Iran. For Azeris in general, see the respective article.

The Azeri (also known as Azerbaijani) population of Iran is mainly found in the northwest provinces: East Azarbaijan, West Azarbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, and Markazi. Many others live in Tehran, Karaj and other regions.[1] Generally, Azeris in Iran have been, "a well integrated linguistic minority", according to academics such as anthropologist Patricia Higgins.[2] In fact, until the Pahlavi period in the 20th century, "the identity of Iran was not exclusively Persian, but supra-ethnic", as much of the political leadership, starting from the 11th century, had been Turkic.[3] The Iranian and Turkic groups were integrated until 20th century nationalism and communalism began to alter popular perception.[3] Despite friction, Azerbaijanis in Iran came to be well represented at all levels of, "political, military, and intellectual hierarchies, as well as the religious hierarchy."[2]

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[edit] Background

Resentment came with Pahlavi policies that suppressed the use of the Azerbaijani language in local government, schools, and the press.[4] However with the advent of the Iranian Revolution in 1979, emphasis shifted away from nationalism as the new government highlighted religion as the main unifying factor. Within the Islamic Revolutionary government there emerged an Azeri nationalist faction led by Ayatollah Kazem Shariatmadari, who advocated greater regional autonomy and wanted the constitution to be revised to include secularists and opposition parties; this was denied.[5] Azeri nationalism has oscillated since the Islamic revolution and recently escalated into riots over the publication in May 2006 of a cartoon that many Azeris found offensive.[6][7] The cartoon was drawn by Mana Neyestani, an ethnic Azeri, who was fired along with his editor as a result of the controversy.[8][9]

Despite sporadic problems, Azeris are an intrinsic community within Iran. Currently, the living conditions of Azeris in Iran closely resemble that of Persians:

“ The life styles of urban Azarbaijanis do not differ from those of Persians, and there is considerable intermarriage among the upper classes in cities of mixed populations. Similarly, customs among Azarbaijani villagers do not appear to differ markedly from those of Persian villagers.[1] ”

Azeris in Iran are in high positions of authority with the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei currently sitting as the Supreme Leader. Azeris in Iran remain quite conservative in comparison to most Azeris in the Republic of Azerbaijan. Nonetheless, since the Republic of Azerbaijan's independence in 1991, there has been renewed interest and contact between Azeris on both sides of the border.

Andrew Burke writes:

“ Azari are famously active in commerce and in bazaars all over Iran their voluble voices can be heard. Older Azari men where the traditional wool hat and their music and dances have become part of the mainstream culture. Azaris are well integrated and many Azari Iranians are prominent in Persian literature, politics and clerical world.[10] ”

[edit] Ethnic status in Iran

According to Amnesty International:

"Iranian Azeri Turks, who are mainly Shi’a Muslims, are the largest minority in Iran, [and are] believed to constitute between 25-30 per cent of the population. They are located mainly in the north and north-west of Iran. As Shi’a, they are not subject to the same kinds of discrimination as minorities of other religions, and are well-integrated into the economy, but there is a growing demand for greater cultural and linguistic rights, including implementation of their constitutional right to education through the medium of Turkish. A small minority advocate secession of Iranian Azerbaijan from the Islamic Republic of Iran and union with the Republic of Azerbaijan. Those who seek to promote Azeri Turkish cultural identity are viewed with suspicion by the Iranian authorities, who often accuse them of vague charges such as 'promoting pan-Turkism'". [11]

In addition, the current Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, is an Azari, along with much of Iran's military and political leadership, a fact which seriously undermines claims of discrimination of Azaris in Iran or that they do not have equal opportunities compared to other ethnic groups in Iran, such as Persians. However, At the end of June 2005, scores of people were reportedly arrested following an Azari gathering at Babak Castle in the city of Kalaybar. Similar events in previous years have also met with repression [1] [2].

In contrast to the claims of de-facto discrimination of some Azeris in Iran, the governemt claims that its policy in the past 30 years has been one of pan-Islamism, which is based on a common Islamic religion of which diverse ethnic groups may be part, and which does not favor or repress any particular ethnicity, including the Persian majority. Persian language is thus merely used as the lingua franca of the country, which helps maintain Iran's traditional centralized model of government. But Azari language and culture is still nevertheless taught and studied at the university levels in Iran. [3]

Furthermore, Article 15 of Iran's constitution reads:

"The use of regional and tribal languages in the press and mass media, as well as for teaching of their literature in schools, is allowed in addition to Persian."[12]

[edit] Famous Azeris of Iran

Azaris (Azeris) - Turkic speaking and non-Turkic speaking - have participated in Iran's history and politics, and continue to do so. Some of the most famous Azeris of Iran involved on national levels are:

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ a b Azarbaijanis
  2. ^ a b pp.188-191
  3. ^ a b Ibid.
  4. ^ Iran between Two Revolutions by Ervand Abrahamian, p. 131. Princeton University Press (1982), ISBN 0691101345 (retrieved 10 June 2006).
  5. ^ "Shi'ite Leadership: In the Shadow of Conflicting Ideologies", by David Menashri, Iranian Studies, 13:1-4 (1980) (retrieved 10 June 2006).
  6. ^ "Ethnic Tensions Over Cartoon Set Off Riots in Northwest Iran" - The New York Times (retrieved 12 June 2006)
  7. ^ "Iran Azeris protest over cartoon" - BBC (retrieved 12 June 2006)
  8. ^ "Cockroach Cartoonist Jailed In Iran" - The Comics Reporter, May 24, 2006 (retrieved 15 June 2006)
  9. ^ "Iranian paper banned over cartoon" - BBC News, May 23, 2006 (retrieved 15 June 2006)
  10. ^ Burke, Andrew. Iran. Lonely Planet, Nov 1, 2004, P 42-43. 1740594258
  11. ^ Amnesty International. Iran. New government fails to address dire human rights situation
  12. ^ Iran - Constitution
  13. ^ a b Clawson, Patrick. Eternal Iran, 2005, ISBN 1-4039-6276-6, Palgrave Macmillan, p.5


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Azeri communities outside Azerbaijan
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